


Denouement

by themayqueen



Series: Sweetest Downfall [9]
Category: Hanson
Genre: F/M, Fan Characters, Marriage Proposal, Oral Sex, Romance, Sexual Content
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-09
Updated: 2013-06-09
Packaged: 2017-12-14 11:35:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,231
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/836447
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/themayqueen/pseuds/themayqueen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A year after moving to Tulsa and getting involved with Zac (again), Spencer still sometimes has doubts. She visits him while he’s on tour to finally get over that last hurdle and conquer her fears, and soon she’s faced with a big question about their future.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Denouement

_You are my sweetest downfall  
I loved you first , I loved you first_

 

If anyone had told Spencer four years ago what her future held, she would have called them a liar and possibly insane. Moving to Tulsa was a big enough shock to her system, even without everything else that it entailed. Teaching was still her passion and she had no plans to quit doing that, but now her days were also filled with packing school lunches for her boyfriend’s son, odd jobs at the recording studio and phone conversations at all sorts of odd hours whenever Zac could find a few free seconds to call.

No, it definitely wasn’t the life she would have imagined for herself, but Spencer could think of precious few ways she would have changed it.

There were a few details about the past few years that she wasn’t particularly happy about, of course. She had moved far past dwelling on the sordid way their relationship had begun, though. Spencer knew Zac’s fans still liked to speculate about it, but she also knew there was no way to stop them. His fans were a strange breed that she didn’t think she would ever truly understand. 

Especially one fan in particular…

Spencer still couldn’t quite believe how well that whole situation had worked itself out. Somehow, no doubt by throwing lots of money around, Zac had managed to keep the details of the incident—as everyone seemed to refer to it—and Amberly’s arrest from becoming public knowledge. Rumors abounded, of course, as they had a way of doing, but the actual legal proceedings all remained under wraps. 

It was all wrapped up incredibly quickly, in fact. That was the part that amazed Spencer the most. It just seemed so _easy_.

At no point did Amberly show any remorse. Throughout it all, she was adamant that she was in the right. In the end, Spencer supposed that was her downfall. Somehow, her lawyer convinced her to go along with a plea bargain that only slightly lessened her potential sentence. It was a silencing tactic, really, but Spencer wasn’t sure Amberly was even sane enough to realize that. Neither Zac nor Spencer wanted to risk Amberly getting on the stand and blabbing whatever she thought she knew, and neither did they think it was the court’s business _how_ their relationship began.

That was all in the past. The present was what mattered now.

Now Amberly was a thing of the past, too. For the next fifteen years, with a chance of parole for good behavior, Spencer didn’t need to worry about her at all. It wasn’t long enough to entirely ease her mind, but it went a long way toward making her life easier.

It wasn’t easy, though, to deal with Zac being away on tour. Spencer had never considered herself a particularly clingy sort of girl, but she had to admit that she’d become rather dependent on Zac. She attributed most of that to how scared and paranoid she had become thanks to Amberly’s stalking, but the need to constantly be by his side persisted even after Amberly was out of their lives. It was a change Spencer wasn’t especially fond of, and it was even more difficult to handle when Zac was thousands of miles away.

They called, texted and skyped as much as possible, but none of that was the same as having him there with her. On rare occasions, Kate allowed Shepherd to have “sleepovers” at Zac’s apartment even when he was away. Spencer knew that was rather unorthodox, but somewhere along the way, she and Kate seemed to come to some sort of agreement. They’d found a common ground in the strange world of divorce, rock and roll and Zac Hanson. To his dismay, they’d even bonded over discussing how infuriating he could be. 

Although the sleepovers were usually on the weekend, they had agreed to extend one of them into the week so that Spencer could take Shepherd to Kansas to see his daddy in concert. She didn’t have an early class the next day, and Shepherd’s school was on fall break. It all seemed to line up perfectly—including the fact that Spencer’s fall break began a few short days later. She would finally have a chance to go on the road and see what Zac’s life was truly like. 

It was a scary thought, but Spencer knew she had to face his fans at some point. If she was going to be a part of Zac’s life, she was going to be a part of his _entire_ life, even the parts that were scary and less-than-glamorous. After fighting this thing between them for so long, and then fighting to keep him, Spencer was determined that she would remain in his life this time, no matter what it took.

****

It had been far, far too long since Zac had been onstage. Except for a few concerts here and there, the band hadn’t toured for over a year. None of them had really made the decision to stop being a touring band; it just seemed to happen naturally. Their children were getting older, they hadn’t even been certain about doing another full album and then there was that little matter of Zac’s girlfriend being stalked and very nearly kidnapped and murdered.

Those sort of things would put a strain on any band, even one as close knit as Hanson.

But now Zac was back on tour, back in front of his fans, back singing, and it felt better than ever. These songs, this music, felt _right_. It didn’t hurt that it seemed to be their most popular album in years. There was a new energy not just in the band, but amongst the fans, too. There was just one thing missing during this tour.

Spencer.

Although the loneliness never really went away, he had gotten used to not having Shepherd on tour. Even before the divorce, Kate had frowned upon traveling with the baby, so Zac had never had the experience of having his son right there on the tour bus with him. He was used to that, even though he would have preferred for things to be different. 

What he wasn’t used to, though, was being away from Spencer. They’d had the entire fall and winter together, and she’d even accompanied him on a few small trips that didn’t clash with her teaching schedule. She chose her trips wisely, not having gotten up the nerve to facing the craziest his fans had to offer yet. To that end, she’d stayed home from Jamaica and chosen to teach summer classes rather than tag along for the first leg of the world tour. Zac disliked being without her, but he understood it. Her job was important to her; she wasn’t going to skip out on it or just quit it, and he would never ask her to.

He understood, too, the deep seated fear she now had. Zac despised that fear, because he knew that it was, effectively, his fault. Spencer would tell him it wasn’t, that he wasn’t responsible for Amberly being crazy. Realistically, he knew that. But knowing that didn’t stop him from blaming himself and wishing there was some way he could alleviate Spencer’s fears. He supposed nothing but time would ease them.

Time passed strangely for him on tour, though. Every day was the same but different, and the hours usually sped by, but missing Spencer made it worse. Finally, though, the day had come when he would get to see not only her but Shepherd again. Zac had counted down to that day, and now that it had arrived, he could barely even stay seated behind his drums thanks to his excitement.

Zac knew that Spencer and Shepherd were in the balcony, but other than a quick phone call to let him know they’d arrived as soon as possible after Shepherd’s school let out for the day, he hadn’t seen or heard from either of them. The venue’s bright lights made it nearly impossible for him to see their faces in the crowd, no matter how much he strained his eyes. Zac decided it was better that way. He had a special song he wanted to play for his solo, one that he’d never quite worked up the nerve to tell Spencer was partially about her, and being able to see her reaction to it would only make him even more nervous.

As he sat down at the piano, he risked a tiny glance up at the balcony and a huge smile broke out across his face. Spencer was right up against the railing with Shepherd by her side, waving madly at his daddy. Zac couldn’t quite say for sure, but he thought he could see a smile on Spencer’s face, too. He took a deep breath and began to play, trying not to remember the first time he’d played a song for this strange and wonderful woman who had completely changed his life.

 _Amelia was always the one for me but she, she wouldn’t stay_  
_And on a fine day, I came home to find that she had sailed away_  
_Maybe I am broken in some way I can’t say_  
_‘Cause I don’t wanna change, but lord knows that I need some help  
_ _Won’t you save me from myself_

Zac had never been good at disguising the true emotions behind his songs. Sometimes he didn’t even try. This song, he knew, gave people plenty to talk and speculate about, but he didn’t care. He couldn’t think of any other song he was more proud of writing, even though it had taken him years to find the right words.

It had taken him years, too, to come to terms with the way his marriage had ended. He knew that ultimately, it was his fault. The end was in sight, but he had given Kate the final push to call it quits. They had both been looking for some reason, some distinct moment they could point to and say that was the cause, the last straw. Zac wasn’t at all proud of himself for being the one to push them over that cliff, but he knew that somehow, in some way, they would have fallen over it even without his transgressions.

 _Cecilia with flowers in her hair was like the sun, she brought me the light_  
_And I can’t tell you for the life of me why I would choose to let it burn it out_  
_I wish I was numb, alone here in my cell_  
_Something in my heart is making me not feel so well  
_ _Won’t you save me from myself_

Even as a songwriter, Zac didn’t have the words to explain how lucky he felt to have Spencer. He knew affairs rarely ended the way his had, although it had taken quite a while for the happy ending to find them both. 

He would never have admitted it to Spencer, but he was certain he’d fallen for her the second he laid eyes on her. He had stumbled upon her—literally—and his life had never been the same since. Spencer was like no other woman he’d ever known. She was ridiculously intelligent, but a loud, brash party girl lurked just beneath her books and sophisticated clothes. She was far more sweet and caring than she ever would have admitted to as well. Zac had spent years searching for someone who might come close to embodying all of her qualities _and_ have what it took to deal with him, but no one else could. 

There simply was no one else like Spencer, and until he had her in life his again, he just felt incomplete.

 _I get no sleep ‘cause I’m all alone_  
_Like a living shadow where there once was bone_  
_One cut deep and the other went sour_  
_And no one’s to blame but I feel so shattered_  
_Maybe I am lying still inside my shell_  
_‘Cause I keep making waves and falling victim to the swell  
_ _Won’t you save me from myself_

It was liberating to sing about it now, now that all of the events that had inspired the song were over. His lingering doubts and fears were purged out of him every time he played those notes and sang those words. 

Sad songs were strangely fun to play, like a form of catharsis, but as Zac stood up from the piano and stared up at his little family in the balcony, he could find no reason at all to actually be sad.

****

Being on tour with Zac, even if only for a few days, was different from anything Spencer had ever experienced before. She’d gotten a brief taste of his life when she tagged along for part of their promotional appearances, but touring was yet another different world. On a practical level, it was a huge change from a normal life. Other than that time her parents had decided that buying a camper and spending the summer in the Smokies would save their marriage—it didn’t—Spencer had never spent any amount of time in anything resembling a tour bus. It was a shock to the system to be in such close quarters with so many smelly men.

And then there were the fans.

She couldn’t hide from them. Spencer knew that. After just two days on the road with him, they had already begun to notice her. Spencer tried to ignore the stares and whispers, not wanting to know a single word of what they said. Whatever they thought of her, she knew she’d thought worse of herself at some point. These girls couldn’t possibly hurt her. After surviving Amberly’s torture, Spencer thought she might as well be bulletproof, but the second she stepped off the bus and cameras began clicking, she wanted to crawl into a hole and never come out again.

Spencer couldn’t stand being on tour and not being useful in some way, so she’d ended up effectively becoming a member of the crew. At Zac’s insistence, she’d agreed that selling merch was out of the question, and she couldn’t do much of the heavy lifting, but she was still capable of running from place to place and fetching whatever needed to be fetched. It wasn’t a glamorous job by any means, but it kept her in motion so that, for the most part, she had little time to really think about how anxious and surrounded she felt. Making herself useful was, as it turned out, rather useful that way.

On the other hand, it was pretty nice to just sit down at the bar and watch Zac during soundcheck. The rest of the band was good, too, of course, but it was Zac who held her attention. That particular House of Blues didn’t seem to believe in air conditioning, so Spencer had a rather nice view of Zac sweating through his t-shirt under the lights. As she sipped the Long Island iced tea she’d persuaded the bartender to make, Spencer decided that she could definitely get used to that particular aspect of touring. She wasn’t shallow by any means, but she was certain any girl with eyes could have appreciated how gorgeous Zac was. 

Naturally, something just had to interrupt the fantastic show she was watching.

From the stage, Taylor called out to her, “Spencer, can you run back to the bus and get my laptop?”

Spencer didn’t even bother asking _why_ he needed his laptop in the middle of soundcheck. With Taylor, she had learned, it was usually safest not to ask too many questions. While Zac might have been incorrigible, Taylor was something else entirely—something that even Spencer didn’t have the vocabulary to describe. As she made her way to the bus to search for his laptop, she decided that Natalie had to be a saint to not only tolerate but love him. 

She was learning, however slowly, how to deal with Zac’s family. It was no easy task, mostly due to how large it was and seemingly getting bigger by the day. They had all been surprisingly accepting of her, which she supposed was at least partially because they didn’t all know the truth about the affair. Spencer wished it would stop haunting them, but it seemed that it kept being drug up and forced back into her memory. Shaking her head as though that could rid it of unpleasant thoughts, she continued her search for the laptop, finally locating it and its tangle of cords underneath a couch cushion.

Spencer tucked the laptop inside the leather jacket she’d slung over her shoulders to keep out the crisp October air. It might have been warm inside the venue, but Cleveland was rather brisk this time of year, and Spencer was a southern girl at heart. She didn’t fare well in the cold, and even the short walk she had across the parking lot was more of it than she cared to endure. 

The parking lot was significant fuller than it had been when they’d rolled up to the venue that morning. Spencer was always surprised to see the few girls who seemed to camp out for every show, and it both energized and frightened her to watch the crowd outside grow in the hours before the concert. Most of the crowd now seemed to be focused around the venue’s outside walls, straining to hear a few stray notes from soundcheck, but there were girls scattered all around. It took Spencer a moment to realize that the small group walking toward her were in fact trying to get her attention.

“You’re Zac’s girlfriend, right?” One of them asked once they were quite close, and Spencer felt like thanking her for not shouting it out for all and sundry to hear.

“Yeah,” she replied, her lips curling into a tight, almost painful smile. “I am.”

“Told you that was her,” a second girl mumbled, giving the first one a nudge.

“I didn’t say it wasn’t,” the first girl argued, and Spencer could do nothing more than just look on in a mix of horror and amusement. “It’s not like anyone’s seen her that much. She could have just been someone on the crew or something.”

“Well, I’m not,” Spencer cut in, pulling the laptop out of her jacket a bit and flashing it at the girls. “But I do need to take this in to Taylor before he pitches a fit about it.”

That made the girls laugh, and for a moment, Spencer thought they were going to let her pass without another word. Then a third one began riffling through her bag, finally pulling out some sort of stuffed animal. She held it out to Spencer with a sheepish look on her face. 

“Here, can you give this to Zac for me?” She asked, blushing. “I just want to make sure he gets it. It’s a little stuffed Bilbo Baggins, I thought he would like it…”

Spencer blinked at the girl for a moment, then took the plushie from her. “Yeah, I’ll umm… I’ll make sure he gets it.”

The girl gave Spencer such a huge smile then that she couldn’t help returning it, however she might have felt about the plushie. All three of the girls began talking then, their voices overlapping each other and getting more excited as they asked more questions about the concert that night than Spencer could dream of answering. She tried her best to answer them and not get freaked out when they called her by her name, even though she was certain she hadn’t given it to them. 

Finally, after assuring them at least half a dozen times that she would tell the boys they said hello, the girls let her pass. She practically sprinted the last few yards into the back door of the venue, barely even pausing to flash her laminate at the security guard. 

By the time she located the boys, it was obvious that they’d ended soundcheck and Taylor really hadn’t had any pressing need for his laptop. Spencer wanted to be angry or even surprised, but she wasn’t. She just grabbed a beer from the refrigerator and collapsed onto the green room couch, perfectly content to stay in that very spot until the show began. 

She knew the second the stage lights went up, though, she would be out there, ready to watch her man. Despite not having heard more than a dozen Hanson songs before falling in love with Zac, she couldn’t resist watching every moment of their concert. It was mostly because of Zac, but she did find that she really enjoyed their music—even the songs she had a sneaking suspicion were about her. She didn’t dare ask Zac if her suspicions were correct, though.

She sipped her beer slowly as she waited for him to return from the shower she’d been told he was taking. The Bilbo plushie was perched on the arm of the couch as though he were waiting, too. Spencer had nearly finished her beer by the time the green room door opened to reveal Zac, now in clean, dry clothes with a towel slung over his shoulder. His hair hung in damp curls that Spencer had an irrational urge to bury her face in. Instead she just gave him a smile and waved Bilbo’s little plush arm in his general direction.

“What the hell is that?” Zac asked, stepping toward the couch.

“Gift from a fan,” Spencer replied. “I was cornered by a few of them on my way back in from the bus.”

Zac flopped across the couch, throwing his legs across Spencer and sprinkling her with a few drops of water still clinging to his hair. He picked up the plushie and turned it over in his hands a few times. “He’s kinda cute. Wonder if she made him. They make stuff for us sometimes, you know.”

“They make me run for cover,” Spencer replied. “How about that?”

“Aww, baby,” Zac said, chuckling softly as he wrapped his arms around Spencer. “Were they really that bad? I mean, I know some of them are…”

Spencer shook her head. “No, it wasn’t really that bad. Other than jumping out and stalling me so they could hand over their gift for you, these girls were alright. You know they just all make me feel… I don’t know, it just still causes this panic, this feeling like I can’t breathe. It’s so stupid, but it’s awful.”

Zac pulled her closer to his body and sighed. “I don’t want to say that you’re just going to have to keep facing your fears, but… I don’t know how else to fix this.”

“Neither do I,” Spencer admitted, curling up against Zac. “Truthfully, a psychiatrist would probably have a field day with my brain.”

“Are you really considering that? I mean, getting counseling or whatever?”

Spencer shrugged. “I just feel like I don’t have time to breathe, let alone sit on some couch and let someone poke at my brain. Maybe someday.”

“Well, we’ll talk about it once the tour is over, okay?” Zac offered.

“When will that be?” Spencer asked, smirking a little. “In about three years?”

“Mmm, something like that,” Zac admitted, chuckling softly. “You feel up for facing them again, though? I could use a nap, and you know I sleep better with you beside me, even in those teeny weeny little bunks.”

“Ah, yes,” Spencer replied, giggling. “There’s nothing I love more than napping in a coffin with my face in your armpit.”

Zac grinned. “I knew you’d agree.”

Although it made her anxiety flutter up again, Spencer allowed Zac to take her hand and lead her out of the venue. It wasn’t much of a disguise, but they both hid behind their leather jackets and aviators, as though those two items could shield them from the fans. Spencer didn’t think she took a single breath during the entire walk, and only allowed herself to let out a sigh when the bus door shut behind them. To her surprise, not a single fan had stopped them, although she saw more than a few cameras flashing as they passed.

“See?” Zac said, shedding his sunglasses and jacket. “That wasn’t so bad, was it?”

“That particular occasion, no. But that was just a fluke.”

Zac pulled Spencer close and slid his hands under her jacket. “Spence, baby… I’m not going to say you’re overreacting, because I know you’re really not. And even if you were, I know you can’t help it. But I promise, I will never, ever let anything happen to you… again.”

“I know, I know.” Spencer sighed and leaned against Zac’s chest. She could feel his heartbeat through his shirt and that calmed her more than anything else possibly could.

Spencer shamelessly rested nearly all of her weight against Zac, and he continued to trail his hands up and down her sides. When Spencer didn’t complain, he let them wander under her shirt, tracing delicate patterns along her waist and up to the edge of her bra. Spencer leaned up and pressed a gentle but lingering kiss to his lips, then pulled back and eyed him.

“Here, Zac?” She asked. “Right here? Really?”

He shrugged. “Or elsewhere. But yes, there’s a chance I didn’t _really_ come back here to take a nap…”

“You’re awful,” Spencer said, her smile contrasting with her words.

“It’s true,” Zac replied, pausing to nibble on Spencer’s bottom lip. “But you love me anyway.”

“Also true,” Spencer said, the words devolving into little more than a moan as Zac continued trailing kisses down her face and neck.

She shed her jacket and just barely managed to kick off her shoes as Zac practically drug her down the bus’s short and narrow hallway toward the bathroom. She wasn’t entirely sure what he had in mind, but she certainly wasn’t going to question it. He nudged her into the tiny bathroom stall and Spencer heard the lock click into place before she had time to spin around. In truth, there was barely even _room_ to turn around with both of them in the little bathroom, but Spencer certainly wasn’t going to complain about being in close quarters with Zac.

“Exactly what are you planning, mister?” Spencer asked as Zac backed her up against the sink and trailed kisses down her neck.

“You’ll see,” he mumbled. 

His lips continued on down her chest, even though she was still full clothed. Spencer could feel his breath through the thin silk top she wore and it made her shiver. She wasn’t entirely sure what he was planning until she watched him drop down to his knees in front of her. Spencer was torn between being incredibly turned on and incredibly surprised that Zac had found the room for that maneuver. She braced herself against the countertop as Zac undid her jeans and pushed them down her legs. Spencer attempted to wiggle the rest of the way out of them, but was distracted by Zac’s hot breath against her panties.

“Zac…” she half-moaned, half-whined. “You’re killing me here.”

“I hope not,” he replied, standing up and swiftly hosting her up onto the edge of the sink. “You know I love you.”

Spencer nodded. “I love you, too.”

Zac gave her a genuine smile and leaned down to kiss her. By the time he pulled away, that smile had turned into a seductive sort of smirk that made a wonderful chill run down Spencer’s spine. She watched transfixed as he fell back to his knees and kissed the inside of her thigh. When he tugged at her panties, she lifted her body off the counter willingly to allow him to remove them. Spencer couldn’t believe they were doing this on the bus of all places, but with Zac staring up at her from between her legs, she was powerless to tell him to stop.

Instead, she rested her legs on his shoulders and ran a hand through his hair, twirling the still damp curls around her fingers. Zac gave her another smile, his eyelashes fluttering beautifully as he leaned in and pressed his lips to her flesh.

Spencer couldn’t have stopped herself from moaning if she’d wanted to.

Zac’s eyes remained trained on hers the entire time, but it didn’t distract him from the task at hand, as it were. Spencer’s legs tightened around him as he licked up the wetness that she could tell she was practically dripping with. He slipped a finger into her easily and she threw her head back and moaned loudly, not even caring if anyone else was around to hear. The only thing Spencer’s mind could focus on right then was the boy between her legs, bringing her to ecstasy with his fingers and tongue. Zac knew exactly what to do to push her over the edge, and it took little more than an increase in his tempo and a perfectly timed flick of his tongue for her to loose all control. 

He held Spencer’s shaking body tightly as he pulled himself back to his feet. There was a fine layer of sweat on her brow and her hair had fallen out of its bun, but otherwise she looked absolutely perfect to him. Then again, Zac couldn’t think of a single time when he _hadn’t_ thought Spencer looked perfect. He ran a hand through her hair, then leaned in and kissed her forehead.

“That was…” Spencer sighed happily. “Far better than a nap.”

Zac smirked. “Well, maybe you can return the favor later.”

“I think you will _definitely_ have earned it by them,” Spencer replied.

Zac just laughed and gave Spencer another gentle kiss.

****

A few whirlwind days later, the tour bus had pulled back into Tulsa for a short break. The band had less than two weeks to rest before continuing the tour in Florida, and Zac had all but begged Spencer to ditch her classes and tag along. As tempting as it sounded, she knew it was out of the question. Her fears hadn’t totally vanished by facing them head on, but she had to admit there was a certain allure to touring. When it worked with her schedule, she had every intention of joining Zac on the road again. A few of their winter tour dates in Europe fell after her semester ended, and Spencer always had wanted to travel.

Unfortunately, a month and a half stood in the way of any possibility she had of seeing him again. It was beginning to feel like they’d spent more of 2013 apart than they had together, yet Spencer could honestly say she’d never felt more loved in her life.

Zac and Spencer decided to make the most of what little time they had together. When she wasn’t at work, they spent hours upon hours in bed, more than returning any favors that might have been owed. Two days before he was scheduled to leave yet again, Zac insisted that he and Spencer go out for a nice dinner. Going out on actual dates was something of a luxury for them, both because of how little free time they had and because of Spencer’s paranoia. Zac understood that, but he wanted to make this night special, and that meant actually putting on pants and leaving the apartment.

He had to admit, his plan for the night hadn’t been all that well thought out. He’d considered a dozen or more different ways this might have played out, and in the end, he just couldn’t wait for the perfect scenario to present itself. He just had to go for it, and hope that following his gut worked out better the second time.

Spencer was amused, to say the least, when he suggested they spend their last real evening together at The Hunt Club. It wasn’t particularly classy, and it reminded her of the night she’d attempted to hide his texts from her friends. As they drove there, she wondered if even then, Amberly had known the truth. With a sigh, she leaned back in the passenger seat and tried to forget about the girl she knew would haunt her for a long time. She only snapped back to reality when she heard Zac cursing under his breath.

“What’s wrong?” Spencer asked, eying his adorable pout and furrowed brow.

“Forgot there was a concert here tonight,” Zac said, motioning toward the street that was packed with cars. “It’s going to be a madhouse anywhere around here.”

“It’s Saturday night, darling,” Spencer replied. “It’s going to be a madhouse anywhere. I can’t imagine The Hunt Club will be _that_ bad while the concert is still going on.”

Zac’s frown faded slightly. “Maybe not, but I’m going to park behind the studio anyway. That’s probably as close as we’ll get.”

“That’s fine,” Spencer said, giving him a smile she didn’t think he even noticed and reaching across the console to grasp his hand. “It really doesn’t matter. We’re out together and you’re wearing a clean shirt. I don’t think I could be any happier.”

Zac grinned as she shifted his truck into park just out of sight around the corner of their office. “I’m glad you’re so easy to please.”

“Mmm, you’re lucky I am,” Spencer replied, giggling. She hopped out of the truck before Zac could reply to that.

When she met him around the front of the truck, she was pleased to see that he was laughing. He wrapped his arm around her and led the way down the street to the restaurant. Spencer curled against his side and sighed happily. It might have looked strange to anyone watching, but the two of them understood that their jokes were just another way of expressing how much they loved each other.

There were still moments when the word _love_ surprised Spencer as it crossed her mind. It seemed to fall off her lips so easily now. She could remember a time when she thought that word was the farthest thing from what she felt for Zac. He was a lost little boy who needed comforting, but she couldn’t provide him with all that he needed. She could be his friend and his lover, but it wasn’t until that second meeting, when he looked like an entirely different man, that Spencer ever entertained the idea of being more than that to him. Even then, it had taken them years to find their way to each other, and Spencer still sometimes had to pause to just let it all sink in.

They walked arm in arm down the crowded street, but both Spencer and Zac were pleased to find the restaurant wasn’t any busier than any other weekend night. They were seated quickly and soon both were enjoying their soup, sandwiches and beers. While The Hunt Club often placed host to local bands, the atmosphere in the pub that night was sedated enough to keep Spencer from having any anxiety. Zac seemed to be more on edge, but Spencer felt certain that if something were truly bothering him, he would eventually tell her.

Spencer wouldn’t have minded lingering in The Hunt Club for hours, enjoying drink after drink, along with Zac’s company. That wasn’t especially practical, though, particularly not with the crowd in the pub growing over the course of their dinner. Once they had finished their meal and were obviously only occupying a table for the sake of occupying a table, they both had to concede that it was time to leave. 

As they walked back out onto the street, Spencer pulled her jacket tight around her body. Instinctively, without a word, Zac pulled her close and ran his hands up and down her arms. He glanced down the street at the crowd pouring out of Cain’s and pressed a gentle kiss to the stop of Spencer’s head.

“You know,” he said, motioning down the street. “That was where I saw you again for the first time. After you moved here, I mean.”

“Yeah,” Spencer replied with a sigh, remembering that night all too well.

“I thought I’d seen a ghost,” Zac continued. “I mean, I knew you weren’t… I just never thought I would see you again. I was so sure that we were over.”

“Funny thing is, I was sure we were over, too,” Spencer admitted. “Guess we were both wrong about that, hmm?”

Zac pulled back and gave an exaggerated fake gasp. “Are you saying… you were wrong?!”

“I suppose it had to happen once,” Spencer replied, smirking and giving Zac a gentle shove. “Come on, let’s go home. I think I’m still tired from a week of just watching you perform. I don’t know how you aren’t comatose at this point.”

“Lots and lots of practice,” Zac replied with a laugh. “But I am tired. Home sounds good.”

As they resumed walking, Zac pulled Spencer closer and closer to him. She just sighed happily and let herself be held. When it felt so good in his arms, she didn’t care at all that letting him “protect” her made her feel like a bad feminist.

“It was like a breath of fresh air, you know,” Zac said suddenly. “Seeing you again, I mean. Like maybe I would have a second chance with you, a chance to do things right.”

As he spoke, he stopped walking and Spencer stared up at him in wonder. Zac had gotten better at expressing his emotions, but it was still rare for so many of them to spill out of him at once unless he was on stage. Spencer kept her mouth shut, waiting to see where he was going with that train of thought.

“It’s kind of an understatement to say we’ve had our ups and downs,” he continued. “After the way things started… and everything that’s happened… I guess I’m just really lucky that you trust me at all. I know it took me a long time to earn your trust… and your love, but I’m so, so glad that I have. You haven’t always been easy on me, or hell, even nice to me…”

Spencer giggled at that, even though she knew it was true.

“Hush, I’m talking,” Zac said, pressing a finger to Spencer’s lips. Once she’d stifled her giggles, he continued. “Sometimes you really infuriated me, you know. But it never really made me want to run. It just made me want to fight even harder to get you to see what I saw. To get you to love me like I love you.”

“And I do,” Spencer said, then smirked. “Sorry, was I not allowed to interrupt then, either?”

“You can _always_ interrupt to tell me how much you love me,” Zac replied with a smirk of his own.

“Alright, alright.” Spencer chuckled. “Is there a point to all of this?”

“I was getting there,” Zac said, shoving his hands into his pockets and hoping Spencer didn’t pay too much attention to that move. “I just… I just love you so much. I don’t even know when it started—probably the day I met you, to be honest, but it’s this… this thing that just feels like it’s always been a part of me. And always will be. Knowing that, and knowing that you feel the same, is just about enough for me. As long as we both know it’s true, nothing else really matters, right?”

Spencer nodded slowly. She thought she could see where Zac was going with the conversation now. Over the past year, the topic of marriage had come up a lot in their conversations with each other and with other people. Everyone seemed to wonder when they would make things official, as though being love and surviving Amberly’s terrorism meant nothing if Spencer didn’t have a ring on her finger.

“But, you know… I think maybe there is one thing that would make me a little happier, if that’s possible at all,” Zac said, fumbling nervously in his pockets. 

Spencer was certain then that she knew what his point was, but a part of her still couldn’t believe it. It was something of an out of body experience, watching Zac fall to his knee right there on the sidewalk. He pulled his hand from his pocket, and sure enough, there was a small velvet-covered ring box in it. His hand still shaking, he flicked the box open to reveal a ring that shined even in the darkness.

“Spencer… will you marry me?”

For a moment, all she could do was nod. She watched dumbly as Zac slipped the ring onto her finger. It was beautiful—a thick band decorated with antique-looking scroll work and a few inset diamonds. An even larger round diamond rested in the center, and Spencer didn’t even want to know how much that must have set Zac back. While it still drove her crazy, she had learned that Zac had no qualms about throwing around any amount of money if he thought it would make her happy. He never quite seemed to understand that he was all she needed to be perfectly content.

“Zac,” she finally managed to gasp out. “You… you’ve really outdone yourself here. And you _know_ I’ll marry you. Living in sin gets so tiresome.”

He chuckled, pulling himself to his feet and sweeping Spencer up in his arms. She had to laugh as her feet actually left the ground thanks to Zac’s enthusiasm. Once he’d had his fill of kisses and returned her to the sidewalk, he asked, “So, that means I did good?”

“You did fantastic,” Spencer replied. 

“I was a little bit worried that you would say no,” Zac admitted. “You’re just so… independent.”

“You mean stubborn,” Spencer said, chuckling softly. “Maybe I am, but that doesn’t mean I don’t love you. Or that I don’t want to marry you. I think, after everything that’s happened, it’s more of a show of stubbornness to stay with you.”

“Maybe it is,” Zac replied, leaning down to kiss Spencer again. “Whatever the reasoning, I’m just glad you said yes. I’m just glad you’re mine.”

Spencer tilted her head to the side and smirked. “Hmm, am I yours? Or are you mine?”

“Probably the latter,” Zac admitted with a sheepish grin.

She chuckled, then pulled herself onto her tiptoes and pressed her lips to Zac’s. This kiss was deeper and more lingering than the ones they’d shared a few moments before, and Spencer almost wished it never had to end. Only the sounds of laughter and footsteps reminded them that they were still standing in the middle of the sidewalk. With an awkward laugh, they pulled apart and resumed walking toward Zac’s truck.

Spencer couldn’t stop staring down at the ring on her finger, even though she could barely see it once they were out of the glow of the streetlights. She’d never imagined herself to be the sort of girl to gush over a ring, but it was about more than just the sparkly diamond. This ring, and the other set that would come soon, were symbols of everything she and Zac had overcome. When she met him, he’d been a broken little boy she wanted to rescue, but in the end, they’d saved each other.

**Author's Note:**

> Lyrics are from "Samson" by Regina Spektor and "Save Me From Myself" by Hanson.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [New World](https://archiveofourown.org/works/7635421) by [sparkinside (boomersoonerash)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/boomersoonerash/pseuds/sparkinside)




End file.
